US$20 million was shifted from the education component of Belize’s US$125 million Millennium Challenge Compact to the energy sector. It was announced back in April of this year.
Today, in the Open Your Eyes morning show, officials said the move was made with intention to strengthen investment in critical power infrastructure, and it does not reduce the overall value of the programme.
Financial Secretary and MCA-Belize Board Chairman Joseph Waight said the reallocation came after the compact underwent a review in Washington to determine whether Belize’s programme would continue. He said energy was identified as an area with significant needs, which prompted the decision to move funding into that sector instead.
“There was a small number of MCA programs that were approved for continuation. Belize education component was the only program with education that went on. But in the review, Washington, they said, ‘Look, let’s move some money to energy, the need is also big there.’” Weight said.
So does that mean education is losing US$20 million? No.
Waight said the Government of Belize committed to increasing its counterpart contribution to the education component to help fill the gap created by the reallocation. “And so there wouldn’t be a void,” Waight said.
MCC Country Director Jenner Edelman confirmed the total compact value has not changed. “There’s no change at all in the value of the compact agreement coming from MCC, so it’s still 125 million,” she said. “It’s just a reallocation between the two projects so that we can make a more meaningful investment in the energy sector. I think it represents a shared understanding between the US government and the Belizean government that critical power sector infrastructure is fundamental to unlocking economic growth here in Belize.”
Those objectives, she said, remain fixed: cutting the cost of electricity for Belizeans and boosting the number of secondary and TVET graduates equipped with market-ready skills.
The five-year compact combines the US$125 million MCC grant with nearly US$55 million in Belizean counterpart funding.
